29 October 2014

I told them I'd give them candy if they smiled for the camera. It worked! ;)

Here's a quick, adorable Halloween (or really, any day, any holiday) craft that is simple enough kids can help. Individualize basic silhouettes with puff paint, ribbon, contrasting thread, etc. And when Halloween's over, you can rip out the seam, save the decorations and re-sew them onto a larger shirt next year!

Marinate the chicken in the Italian dressing overnight (or at least two hours). Preheat the oven to 350F. Butterfly cut the chicken (cut in half but not all the way through). Season the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Lay pepper strips flat on chicken then cover with cheese. Fold chicken over and wrap with a piece of bacon or two. Secure with toothpicks if needed. Bake for thirty minutes or until cooked through. For the last two to five minutes, set the oven on broil to make the bacon crisp. Serve immediately.

25 October 2014

Yesterday was our church's annual Chili Cook Off. While I love my mom's chili recipe (with a side of pay-the-dentist cinnamon rolls, of course), I decided to try something different this year. A friend shared a white chicken chili recipe and I used it and ended up with the 2nd best chili (first place was also a white chicken chili--I'll have to ask what her secret is!)! While I won't claim this as a particularly healthy soup, it's delicious and perfect for crisp autumn evenings.

24 October 2014

It's no secret that the girls and I love Halloween and since we outnumber Jack four to one, every decoration we make has to have a little flare. My sister sent some cute signs which I proudly displayed outside. That night, we made our very own witch broom to park in between. They're really simple to make and with a few beads or crystals glued on to add a little sparkle, any witch would love to be seen riding one. Kids can help if you're cautious and most of the materials are easy to find (it was a good reason to go out and weed the pasture a bit, haha), making it a quick, cost-effective Halloween decoration!

1. After selecting a broomstick and the bristles, cut the bristle material into similar lengths. While you can cut the bristles so they're smooth, I think a messy broom looks a little more witch-like. If there is such a thing.

If you're going to have a bushy broom, lay everything the same direction.

2. With the broomstick in the middle and near the bottom of the bristles (to help steady the broom while standing), wrap twine or string around the bristle material. It was helpful to have an extra set of hands and to tie a knot around the material to hold it in place before wrapping. Glue ends when finished wrapping.

3. Repeat step two once or twice more.4. Glue crystals/beads to broomstick and bristles.

22 October 2014

My parents visited over the weekend and though they're here on vacation, it's always a working vacation. This time we removed the old, cloudy, cracked windows and put in a beautiful sliding glass door and windows on either side. The best part (other than it's a crystal clear view outside and the set up is GORGEOUS) is that it cost us about a total of $20 to purchase and install everything (I'd say even more awesome than our $25 window in our Iowa home). The sliding glass door was removed from my sister's house and we nabbed the windows from a house salvage. The only real cost was spray foam to seal cracks, some screws, a piece of drywall and some plywood, some of which we already had on hand from other projects.

Here are the windows before we got started--the windows had a great view but they were old, cracked, cloudy and not sealed well. That problem's been taken care of!

14 October 2014

This is a great substitute if you're craving lasagna but don't have the time to make and bake a traditional lasagna. Serve with garlic bread and a salad and you've got a complete meal!Ingredients:2 teaspoons olive oil1 pound sausage3 cups onions, chopped4 cloves garlic, minced2 teaspoons dried oregano1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (optional)2 Tablespoons tomato paste2 tomatoes, chopped OR 1 can (28oz) diced tomatoes2 bay leaves1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped or 1/4 dried basil6 cups chicken stock8 ounces pasta (try rotini, bowtie, etc)Salt and pepper to taste8 ounce ricotta OR cottage cheese1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese2 cups shredded mozzarellaHeat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage and chop into small pieces, browning for about five minutes. Add the onions for another five minutes. Add garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes (if using) and stir for a minute. Add tomato paste and cook for three minutes. Add tomatoes, bay leaves and chicken stock. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Add pasta and cook until al dente (about 12 to 20 minutes, depending on the type of pasta). Before serving, add basil and season with salt and pepper to taste.While the soup is simmering, stir together ricotta or cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese and a pinch of salt. When the soup is ready to be served, portion into bowls and top with a dollop of cheese mixture and sprinkle mozzarella over the top.

This sweet little goat just laid around on the platform, waiting for people to bring her handfuls of oats. That's the life...

We got up a little earlier than we normally do on the weekends and went to the sprawling orchard where the even was being held. I was shocked how many people participated or were there to cheer for people running.

After parking miles and miles away (at least that's what it felt like trying to drag three little kids all the way back to the packet pick up), I got my stuff and anxiously waited for the race to commence. We visited the play area for a while then headed to the startline.

Mile three!

The course was really fun--through fields, around lakes, into a corn maze, through a forest and over bridges. If the hills weren't challenging enough, most of them were covered in slick, wet, Indiana clay that made me slip and slide in a few spots.

I want a pony!

I waved to Jack and the girls near the end then kicked it in for the finish. It wasn't a PR, but I was happy with my time, given the terrain. And I managed to finish seventh in my age group, fifty-fifth overall--not bad out of about eight hundred runners.

Got our cider!

We got our free cider and pumpkin, visited the petting zoo and played a little more before heading home. It was a beautiful morning for a race and a fun one at that!

Welcome to the farm!

In Case You Didn't Already Know...

I'm a stay at home mother of three beautiful, clever girls with another on the way, and a handsome, daredevil boy, and wife to a brainy aerospace engineer who, ironically, barely has enough common sense to keep himself alive day to day. I've got an incurable disorder causing me to love all creatures of the animal kingdom and I've a 'To Do Before I Die' list that could easily circle the globe several times.